Max goes boating---or---a Philadelphia Thanksgiving

For years I have cooked Thanksgiving dinner, and enjoyed it immensely. I suppose it all started with my mother who immediately embraced this holiday in her first year in this country as if it were the most wonderful day on earth. She would start very early in the day with help from my aunt and prepare all the traditional dishes. The turkey, yams with marshmallows, salad, sides of green beans and carrots, cranberry sauce, Mrs. Smith's pumpkin pie and of course her favorite, "the stuff". My aunt would drive her crazy as she ran around making hor s doeuvres of all sorts which as far as my mother was concerned weren't traditional. She'd buy a tablecloth with turkeys on it, matching plates and little paper turkeys that opened their festive tails. At first it was just us but then as the years wore on and my brother and I grew up, got engaged, married, etc. there were more and more people at the table. Once I got married and moved away it wasn't always possible for all of us to get together for the most famous of family holidays. Very soon afterwards I started my own Thanksgiving cooking tradition and when our families couldn't attend there were always friends and their families which were pretty much our extended family. Eventually that changed too as marriages and relationships broke up and family dramas just got a little too soap operaish for our taste. So this year when planning for Thanksgiving we decided to bolt out of town, just the three of us. And what better place for a quick but always fun getaway than lovely Philadelphia and the houseboat under the Ben Franklin bridge.

which Max just loves

so he can look out at the other boats on the pier

while sitting on the deck with his favorite person

and being rocked to sleep

while we go out for breakfast at our favorite greasy spoon

and take a leisurely stroll through Society Hill

shuffling through the ginkgo leaves that cover the sidewalks

while we marvel up at the trees

and the fact that some Summer flowers are still around

then head over to Center City

for a nice lunch of fish tacos

and a drink at Rouge

And did we have the traditional Thanksgiving dinner? Well no, because if it's not made at home it doesn't count. Instead we headed over to Parc and had

Salad Lyonnaise

Rabbit Pappardelle

and Steak Frites.

And then head back to find our little sea dog

taking over our bed.

We have lots to be thankful for.

Autumn Leaves

Despite the fact that we had a monster hurricane with ferocious wind followed by a nor'easter that dumped a bunch of snow on everything there are happily a lot of trees still holding on to their leaves. As weird as it sounds, and feels, I think that this Fall has lasted for quite a while longer than usual, which is wonderful since we can witness those ever changing leaf colors.

As the days have gone by they seem to intensify. The reds have turned into a glowing cranberry that just shimmers in the light, the yellows are deep and vibrant and just so intense in their hue.

Then there are the burnt oranges and all the shades of browns

and a little green still peeks through

It's just so breathtakingly beautiful

...and also a little dangerous. The road I take on my way to work goes through a mountain which is a nature preserve and I am surrounded on both sides by forests full of a huge variety of trees full of every autumn leaf color imaginable and it changes daily. It is impossible not to be awestruck by this amazing sight and I can't help but just stare with my mouth wide open which doesn't bode well for driving so I have to tell myself to snap out of it lest I crash into something. The other day the car in front of me almost swerved off the road which sort of brought me to my senses, now I'm sure to look straight ahead. So I'll enjoy it at my house

which probably won't be much longer

but it has been nice.

Right Max? He's depressed just thinking about it.

Scenes from a fortnight

The preparations

I forgot to buy bread.

 so I baked some.

...got to make the best of it

Luckily I have a thing about candles

because boy did we need them

for reading...

and cooking

and eating

shrimp gumbo

flank steak

tomato and brie salad

or for just sitting around

and wondering when the lights would come back on

or when we would run out of candles, or patience, or sanity. And on the seventh day, they did.

And so did the nor'easter.

but luckily by then we had heat

and the same President we started out with a very long week before

and somehow the milk didn't sour

and the streets were warm enough where it was all a memory very soon

so we can  return to the ordinariness of life.

And thank our lucky stars.

Powerful

We finally got our power back after it went out last Monday at 8:45 PM at the beginning of the storm. After a very difficult and uncertain week we drove home to find a street full of houses with lit windows including ours which had all rooms blazing light. I almost cried. I quickly hugged our little heater of the last week

who will soon be going back to his own bed

with his very own pillow and blanket.

Heart on sleeve time. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all my blog friends who sent worried emails and queries about our well being. You have no idea how much it's meant during a very trying week. I feel very lucky indeed. Now I need to go and catch up with all of you...but not tonight.